


Dinner Date

by SisterDuffin



Category: Casualty (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-03
Updated: 2019-07-03
Packaged: 2020-06-03 14:06:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19465555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SisterDuffin/pseuds/SisterDuffin
Summary: (AU for Thirty Years) Charlie invites Duffy over for dinner. Whilst he can’t promise the food is edible, he can promise wine. And wine is good enough, right? [The kiss in the store cupboard never occurred]





	Dinner Date

Charlie had promised to cook for Duffy, not that he could cook. He’d gone years without having to cook for himself, shift work meant he often just threw a microwaveable meal into the microwave when he got home. Still, he’d promised her wine, something she needed after today’s horrendous shift where she’d delivered her own granddaughter.

He’d cooked a lasagne and had lit a couple of candles on the table. It was romantic, but not overly romantic. He didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable. A single red rose lay on the table in front of where she’d be sat. He wasn’t a romantic kind of guy but he did try.

The doorbell rang, signalling she’d arrived and Charlie looked down at his shirt. He swallowed as his stomach swam with butterflies, why was he so nervous? It was just dinner with his best friend. They’d had dinner plenty of times over the years..

The doorbell rang again and he went to the door, laughing slightly at how impatient she was. He opened the door and smirked softly, “You’re very impatient, Ms Duffin.”

“It’s freezing out here!” She answered back, “I’ll catch a cold.”

He shook his head fondly and stepped aside to let her in. She stepped inside the house, grateful of the warmth as it was cold outside and if he’d left her outside any longer, she would’ve got goosebumps. Closing the door behind him, Charlie asked; “can I take your coat?”

She smiled and unzipped her coat, her back to Charlie. He helped her remove her coat before hanging it up on the rack. His eyes immediately ran down her body to her bottom, her backside much fuller in the jeans. He swallowed, suddenly feeling hot under the collar.

Oh how he’d love to squeeze her bottom.

“Charlie?” She turned around and Charlie flushed a slight pink, flustered at having been caught checking her out. Duffy rose an eyebrow, a small smirk upon her face.

“Do I look ok?” She suddenly felt a little self-conscious.

He nodded, “yes you look…” He paused. Could he call her beautiful? “Fine.”

She sighed, she was going for something a bit more than fine. “Christ Charlie, you could’ve said something else other than fine.” She rolled her eyes before she walked towards the kitchen, only to feel Charlie’s hand on her arm.

“Not yet.”

She stopped and turned around, a small frown on her features. She stepped towards him and placed her hand against his chest.

“What are you planning, Mr Fairhead?”

“Who says I’m planning anything?”

Their eyes met. Charlie swallowed. He’d looked into her eyes so many times over the years and every time made him melt and weak at the knees. He brushed her hair behind her ear and smiled, just before he remembered about the lasagne.

“Oh shit!” He laughed gently and moved away, dashing into the kitchen.

“Don’t come in.” He called as he grabbed a tea-towel and took the lasagne out off the oven. He placed it on the side.

Duffy, with a small shake of her head, wandered into the living room. She began to look at the photographs that lined his mantlepiece and smiled sadly as she picked up the school photograph of Louis. She stroked her finger over the picture before putting it down and moving onto the next. Whilst she was in the living room, Charlie began to serve their dinner, putting both plates on the table along with two wine glasses and a bottle of wine.

He left the kitchen, standing in the doorway of the lounge. “Dinner is served.”

She put down the photograph that she was holding and smiled, “about time, I’m starving.”

“Stand still.”

“What?” She frowned as Charlie walked towards her and stood behind her. “Charlie, what are you doing?”

“Close your eyes, no peeking.”

Although Duffy didn’t know what he was doing, she listened to him for once and closed her eyes. He placed his hands over her eyes and guided her into the kitchen. As he removed his hands from covering her eyes, he whispered; “you can open your eyes now.”

Duffy closed her eyes. The kitchen was mostly in darkness, apart from four candles on the table that were lit. She smiled brightly, had he really gone to all this trouble for her?

“You did all this?”

Charlie suddenly felt a little worried that it was perhaps, over the top. He nodded and coughed, clearing his throat.

“Yes. Sorry, is it too much?”

She turned around and shook her head quickly. It wasn’t too much, it was perfect. She’d never had anyone do this for her before. She placed her hand against his chest again and lent up, giving him a small kiss against his cheek.

“Thank you.”

He smiled, closing his eyes briefly as her lips caught his cheek. She’d left a lipstick mark and she shyly wiped it away with her thumb.

“We should eat before it gets cold.” She whispered, aware that both of them were comfortable where they were.

“I could always put it back in the oven.”

“But I’m hungry,” she answered shyly and he laughed. Pulling out the chair, she sat down and picked up the rose. She inhaled the scent, “is this for me?”

He nodded, “it’s supposed to be romantic, isn’t it? Giving red roses?”

“Something like that.” She suddenly felt herself beginning to get a little teary. A tear rolled down her cheek and landed on the petal of the rose. In both marriages, neither Andrew or Ryan had ever treated her like this.

“Do you want a glass of wine?”

She nodded. They had their dinner mostly in silence, a few words exchanged now and again. Charlie was surprised that his food was edible and Duffy seemed to be enjoying it. As they finished at the same time he watched her for a couple of seconds. As Duffy reached for her wine glass, she noticed Charlie watching her and she found herself blushing.

“What?”

Charlie, noticing that her cheeks had gone slightly rosy, sipped from his glass and replied; “nothing.”

She looked down at the glass. Charlie finished his wine and placed the glass on the table before getting up and clearing the table.

“Would you like dessert?”

She bit her lower lip, “What’s on offer?”

“Other than me?” He laughed at his own joke, “vanilla ice-cream or chocolate and strawberries?”

She blushed and moved from the table, stepping towards him, “Charlie?”

“Uh huh?”

She closed the gap between them. Once again, their gaze met and she placed her hand on his chest for a third time. She ran her tongue along her lower lip as she lent up and whispered;

“How about we take the chocolate and strawberries upstairs and I can thank you for all of this?”

He held her gaze before his hand rested on her bottom and he gave it a delicate squeeze, something he’d wanted to do earlier.

“I thought you’d never ask….” he answered back as he kissed her gently.

She smiled against his lips as she pulled away and tangled her fingers with his, pulling him in the direction of the stairs.

The strawberries and chocolates could wait for a moment.


End file.
